The National WWI Museum and Memorial has undergone some big changes over the last three years. The latest is a one-of-a-kind, immersive exhibit to its already loaded walls.
Encounters, the new exhibit, uses storytelling bolstered by state-of-the-art audio and video technology to share first-person narratives from individuals whose lives were deeply impacted by the Great War.
Allied and Central Power soldiers, a bloodied war-time nurse, dissenters from both sides, factory workers and more, portrayed by actors and actresses in high-tech videos, share their stories that were pulled from diary entries, recordings, and other historical documentation, researched by the museum.
A first hand account from WWI soldier Melville Miller, is reenacted by an actor in Encounters, a new exhibit at the World War I Museum and Memorial, opened to the media for a sneak peak ahead of Memorial Day. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
“We’ve researched and taken 16 stories, letters, diaries, memoirs, interviews, and in people’s own words, we’ve recreated their storytelling. It’s really quite extraordinary. Unlike anything else, at any other museum,” says Matthew Naylor, president of the WWI Museum and Memorial.
National WWI Museum and Memorial staff take in Encounters, a new exhibit at the World War I Museum and Memorial, opened to the media for a sneak peak ahead of Memorial Day, on Wednesday, May 21, 2025. The exhibit uses immersive technology to share first-person narratives, performed by actors, of those impacted by the Great War. The exhibit uses immersive lighting, ultra fine LED boards, and Holoplot spacial audio, the same as used in the Sphere in Las Vegas. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Encounters, a new exhibit at the World War I Museum and Memorial, opened to the media for a sneak peak ahead of Memorial Day, on Wednesday, May 21, 2025. The exhibit uses immersive technology to share first-person narratives, performed by actors, of those impacted by the Great War. The exhibit uses immersive lighting, ultra fine LED boards, and Holoplot spacial audio, the same as used in the Sphere in Las Vegas. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
The exhibit features groundbreaking technology, including Holoplot spatial audio (also used at The Sphere in Las Vegas) that provides a sort of individual surround system, ultra-fine LED that shows every detail in the scenes with remarkable clarity, and unique lighting designs that makes the viewer feel like they are looking right into the characters’ lives.
A first hand account from WWI soldier Clarence Wilbur Pratt, performed by an actor is part of Encounters, a new exhibit at the World War I Museum and Memorial, opened to the media for a sneak peak ahead of Memorial Day, on Wednesday, May 21, 2025. The exhibit uses immersive technology to share first-person narratives, performed by actors, of those impacted by the Great War including soldiers, dissenters, factory workers, and a war-time nurse. The exhibit opens to the public on May 23. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Just in time for Memorial Day, Friday will be the first day members of the public can interact with the new exhibit.
This story was originally published May 22, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
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Dominick Williams serves as a visual journalist for the Kansas City Star. His journalistic endeavors cover a diverse array of topics, notably sports, breaking news, human interest narratives, and culinary features.
